Ball game searching and scoring circuit



Dec. 16, 1958 w. M. BURNSIDE 2,364,619

BALL GAME SEARCHING AND SCORING CIRCUIT Filed June 9, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 GAME SWITCHES FIRST CARD PANEL LAMPS SEARCH SWITCHES (moron maven) wlPsns ANezo rofimrrann" DETECTION SEARCH RELAYS "I-Z-"3-4-5 SEARCH RELAY cou'mc'rs ONE ZS-LAMP PANEL v (FOR ANY 30R 4 OR .5 LAMPS ueu'rsu m A uuel} AWARD cnecums SCORE SCORE R EVALUATION NEA NS MEANS INVENTOR. Walter M. Burnside United States Patent BALL GAME SEARCHING AND SCORING CIRCUIT Walter M. Burnside, Waukegan, 111., assignor to American National Bank and Trust Company of Chicago, executor of the estate of Raymond T. Moloney, deceased Application June 9, 1952, Serial No. 292,561

2 Claims. (Cl. 273--121) The disclosure and improvements pertain to searching circuits of general application and as particularly adapted to electrically operated amusement and game apparatus such as a ball rolling game.

One of the particular features of the invention relates to the provision of a simplified searching circuit and associated apparatus for detecting the closure of circuits in predetermined combinations or orders.

Another feature isthe provision of a ball-rolling game having score-indicating lamps arranged in an array such that a number of lamps may be illuminated in horizontal,

vertical, or diagonal rows, together with a score-award means for establishing score award circuits of different award value, and search-circuit means operating to detect different combinations of operating lamp circuits to establish an award circuit of corresponding value.

Still more particularly, the invention provides a game, such as last above described, in which the lamps may be illuminated in numbers of one to, say, five lamps in vertical, horizontal, or diagonal rows, and said search circuits are contrived to detect which lamps are illuminated and to establish award circuits when a certain number of successive lamps, say, three or more, are illuminated in a vertical, horizontal, or diagonal row.

Another feature of the invention is the provision of a game in the nature of a bingo game having a series of numbered lamps arranged in rows in a square array, so that there will be, say, five horizontal, five vertical, and two diagonal rows of lamps in each array, each row containing five lamps, and each lamp being assigned a score number, as on a glass panel, to be illuminated respectively by a corresponding lamp, as a result of the operation of ball switches actuated in playing the game.

Another object is the provision of search switch means including ganged contact wipers adapted to pass over search contacts in a positional arrangement such that the simultaneous detection of a certain number of energized search contacts in certain geometric patterns (e. g. four or five contacts in a vertical or diagonal line-up, or possibly a horizontal line-up) will operate a group of search relays having interconnected contacts which will set up difierent chain circuits for general control purposes.

More detailed objectsand aspects of novelty and utility of the disclosure will appear as the following description proceeds in view of the annexed drawings, in which:

Fig; 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of a ballrolling game utilizing the invention;

Fig. 2 is a block diagram presenting a schema of the game circuit;

Fig. 3 is a circuit diagram of the searching and award circuits arranged for operation by ball-game switches according to the schema of Fig. 2.

The essential characteristics of the present circuit improvements may be conveniently explained in conjunction with the operation of the novel ball-rolling game shown in Fig. l, which, in its conventional aspects, includes the usual ball-rolling boardlt) having a plurality of ball-receiving pockets 11, in each of which is a conventional ball-operated switch (not seen) actuated by lodgement of a ball in the appertaining pocket. Manipulation of a shooting plunger 12 by the player will project a ball onto the board and probably into one or another of the pockets and cause the number of the corresponding pocket to be illuminated on a glass back panel 13 as a result of the actuation of the corresponding ball switch.

The game instrumentalities thus far described are broadly old; and .part of the novelty resides in a particular arrangement of the scoring numbers on the panel 13, namely, that the said numbers are arranged in three cards or groups in a square array analogous to the arrangement of numbers on a so-called bingo game card.

In Fig. 1 the so-called cards are designated first, second, and third.

Each card contains 25 numbers adapted to be individually illuminated by associated lamps (not seen) situated behind the panel 13.

The numbers on each card are arranged in this embodiment in five horizontal and five vertical rows, all equidistantly spaced so that there will also be two diagonal rows of five lamps each between the diagonal corners of the square array thus outlined. This arrangement of lamps appears to better scale in Fig. 2 in which the first card is depicted.

The object of the game is to light at least three successive lamps in any of the said rows by lodging balls in the proper ball pockets on the game board 10. For this accomplishment, a certain score will be awarded.

Higher scores may be awarded for lighting four and five lamps in any row.

In Fig. 1 three lamps are emphasized at 14 in the first horizontal row of the first card, to depict the lowest scoring combination in one possible arrangement, while on the second card four lamps are emphasized at 15 to represent one of the next highest scoring possibilities, this time in a vertical row. On the third card, five lamps are emphasized at 16 to portray the highest award achieved by illuminating five lamps, this time in a diagonal row.

The schematic circuit arrangement for searching out winning combinations of lamps illuminated by the players efforts, as aforesaid, and for awarding different score values according to the number of lamps illuminated in any Winning line-up, is shown by a block diagram in Fig. 2 wherein the game switches directly control the lights in the first card (and all other cards); and certain search switches are also connected in parallel with the game or ball switches so that whenever a ball is lodged in a pocket the corresponding game switch is actuated to illuminate the corresponding number on the glass panel 13, and at the same time a corresponding contact on the search switches is made hot.

The search switches are motor-driven and continually sweep over the number or ball switch contacts during the course of the game, and if any three, four, or five of these search switch wipers simultaneously find three, four, or five hot contacts in a row, the corresponding search relays will pull up and close there respective search relay contacts.

The search relay contacts are connected in certain chainsto include contacts on not less than three, and as many as four or five of the search relays.

Thus, the numbers from 1 to S in the blocks under the search relay contacts in Fig. 2 indicate which of the five search relays these contacts are on, and it will be seen that. the chain connections include all of the Patented Dec. 16,1958

at a time may be l23; 23-4; 34-5. Likewise, it will be seen that these chains may be formed by numbers taken four at a time or five at a time. For instance, there is a chain for 12--34; or 2345; or l2--345.

It may be here noted that the No. III relay must be included in any scoring chain and hence is shown only once connected to all possible chains.

When any scoring chain connection is set up, as aforesaid, by the search relays the score evaluation means, so-designated in Fig. 2, will cause the associated score register means to show the proper value of score.

Since the circuit connections for the seventy-five lamps actually used in a three-card game, such as depicted in Fig. 1, would be unduly complicated and require more space than can be conveniently had, the illustrative circuit diagrams set forth in Fig. 3 is restricted not only to one card, but the operating connections are confined to five ball switches and the corresponding five score numbers of the lamp panel.

In the upper left-hand corner of Fig. 3 there are shown schematically 25 game switches. These are the ball operated switches in the pockets on the game board 10.

One contact of each of these switches is connected to a common power conductor 20, and the remaining contact of each ball switch is connected to one terminal of a score panel number lamp.

For illustrative purposes, it is assumed that the player has lodged a ball in each of the ball pockets 11, corresponding to the numbers 5-1-9-l424, and closed the corresponding switches numbered the same in Fig. 3, and the lamps of the corresponding numbers are shown shaded in Fig. 3 to represent illumination. For example, in Fig. 3, upper-left, ball switch numbered 1 is closed, thus connecting power from conductor to contact 1A, thence to one terminal of the lamp numbered 1, the remaining terminal of which is connected to a common or return ground.

Likewise, game switch numbered 5 in Fig. 3 connects power from conductor 20 to its contact 5A, thence to the lamp numbered 5, and thence to ground.

In the same manner, the lamps for numbers 9, 14, and 24 will be seen to be respectively energized from common power conductor 20 by the respective and correspondingly numbered game switch contacts 9, l4, and 24, ball-closed with their corresponding contacts 9A, 14A, 24A.

Circuit connections for any of the remaining game switches and their lamps would be identical.

It may be noted at this juncture that certain corresponding contacts on the search contact banks will simultaneously be made hot with the aforesaid lamps 15-9-1424.

For instance, at the upper right in Fig. 3, the contacts of the search contact banks are numbered to correspond to the ball or game switches and their respective score lamps; although in the search banks the contact numbers do not appear consecutively, but in horizontally and vertically related rows, in correspondence with the order depicted on the cards of the game in Fig. 1, including the particular arrangement shown for the first card in Fig. 2.

Thus, in Fig. 3, all of the hot ball or game switc contacts 1, 5, 9, 14, 24, are shown connected in parallel with their corresponding search bank contacts.

Conductor 1X is connected to game switch (and lamp) contact 1A and to all #1 search contacts in the search banks.

The No. 5 ball switch contact 5A is connected by conductor 5X to all #5 search contacts.

Similarly, ball switch contacts 9A, 14A, and 24A are respectively connected by conductors 9X, 14X, and 24X to the corresponding search contacts.

The variously numbered search contacts shown in the upper right-hand portion of Fig. 3 are shown for convenlence In linear arrangement; however, in practice,

these contacts are arranged in five concentric circles and radical alignments generally indicated at 30 on a disc 31.

Each circle (line) of search contacts 30 is engaged by a corresponding rotary sweep or wiper contact finger I, II, III, IV, or V, all rotated in unison by a motor switch drive shaft 32, which is continuously rotated by a geareddown motor 33 connecting to shaft 32 through a conventional slip-clutch 34.

When the game is started for a round of play, the motor 33 is started under control of the usual master game control circuit means 35 commonly employed in this type of ball-rolling game, so that the search switch wipers IV travel repetitiously over the banks of search contacts 39 to detect scoring combinations of hot contacts; and, as will shortly appear, the searching wipers will stop as soon as a scoring combination is detected.

The means for searching out or detecting scoring combinations includes the banks of search contacts 30, the rotary search wipers I-V, and five search relays having operating coils, numbered in Fig. 3, 41 to 45, to which are also applied the roman numerals I to V to correlate each relay with one of the search wipers I to V, to one of which each relay coil is connected as by their respective conductors 41A, 42A, 43A, 44A, 45A.

Now, it being recalled that ball switches numbered 1--59-14 and 24 are assumed to be operated in the showing of Fig. 3, and that the correspondingly numbered search contacts 30 are therefore hot, and it being further noted that the search switch wipers I to V travel in unison over the banks of contacts 30, it will be understood that these wipers travel over the search contacts repetitiously from left to right in the upper right-hand portion of Fig. 3.

It will be observed that the heavily encircled search bank contacts numbered 1, 5, and 9, are hot and are in vertical alignment in the same row; this means that these three contacts will be simultaneously sensed or contacted by the search wipers I, II, and III, and as a result, the search relay coils 41, 42, and 43, will be energized to close their respective chain contacts.

In this example, the search relay contacts corresponding to the aforesaid operated relays I, II, and III, are designated by roman numerals in Fig. 3 as belonging to the corresponding relays, and these contacts which are now closed are also specifically identified by reference characters 51, 52, 53.

It will be observed that relay contact 53 is connected to power source 50, and that the three closed relay contacts 51, 52, 53 complete an award circuit via conductor 56 to a bank of four inter-connected Evaluation contacts 57, which are to be traversed in succession by a wiper contact 60 to energize a search switch brake coil 62 via conductor 63 so long as the wiper 60 remains on any of the four award contacts 57.

As a result of energization of the brake coil 62, the dog 64 is attracted to engage in the teeth of brake disc 36 and stop the rotation of search switch wipers I to V, although the driving part 32A of the motor shaft con tinues to rotate while the slip-clutch driven section 32 is arrested.

A pulsing switch cam 37 is fixed on motor shaft section 32A and rotates continuously, even though the search-switch section is stopped; and this cam repetitiously opens and closes a pulsing switch 38 which is connected to the common power return or ground through a supervisory switch 39 closed by the brake armature 64 when the latter is operated to stop the disc 36.

Opening and closing of the pulse switch means 38 by cam 37 causes a pulsed energization of the stepping evaluation switch coil 65 to rotate the stepping switch disc 66 step-by-step and therefore advance the evaluation wiper contact 60 step-by-step across the contact buttons 57.

Since the group 57 of award contacts are only four in number, it will be understood that when the award wiper 60 takes its fourth step (because of pulsing of coil 65) the wiper will move oif the last of the four award contacts 57 and interrupt the circuit through conductor 63 to the brake coil 62, thus again freeing the brake disc 36 for rotation, so that the search wipers I to V may resume their searching travel.

'In addition, supervisory switch 39 is opened so that the pulsing circuit for award coil. 65 through the campulse switch 38 is also interrupted and the award evaluation switch means 60, 66, remains at rest until a further score (if any) is effected during the same round of play.

Some form of score register, such as a number dial 68, or the like, will be driven or controlled by the disc 66 to indicate to the player the value of his score. The score will preferably be made visiblebefore a sight opening 17 on the backbox panel 13.

Let it now be assumed that the player additionally closes the ball switches for the numbers'25 and 3, so as to complete the top horizontal line of the card shown Fig. 2. g

5 This would mean that the search bank contacts numbered 3 and 2.5 in the first vertical row of search contacts in Fig. 3 (containing the previously scored contacts 5, l, 9) would also now be connected to power or hot, so that when the search wipers IV and V next come around to engage these additional scoring contacts, search relays IV and V (more specifically their coils 44 and 45) will be energized in addition to relays I, II, III, so that the contact chain is expanded; and it will be found that a new award circuit is now established to include the second group 58 containing six award contacts, and the third group 59 containing 10 award contacts.

The search relay contacts which would set up these new chains are identified by reference characters 53, 52A, 70, 71, 71A, 72; and it will be observed that switch 71 would-finally connect power via conductor 74 to the award contact group 58, and switch 72 via conductor 75 to award group 59.

As a result, the Wiper 60 now resting on the first contact of group 58 would connect this power to the brake coil 62 and again stop the search switch section of the motor switch; and the evaluation step switch would again be pulsed by the cam switch means 3738, as before, until the evaluation step switch Wiper 60 had taken 16 steps and left the last of the contacts in group 59; whereupon the brake means 36, 62, 64, would be released and the searching operation of the search switch means I to V, 30, 31, would be resumed.

Where such a game is arranged for co-in-operation, the player is generally given a certain number of balls (e. g. five) to shoot, and the game automatically shuts oif after a predetermined lapse of time by conventional means Wellknown in the art and not necessary to describe here; or the player initiates a new round of play by operation of the master game .control circuit to reset the scoring and indicating mechanisms and circuits and start the motor switch means in operation once again.

One of the results of restarting the game is to energize the reset coil 80 for the evaluation step switch to zeroize the latter, thus erasing the previous score indication and returning the award evaluation wiper 60 to the starting position on the first contact of group 57.

In resetting the game for play, the balls trapped in the switch pockets 11 are freed by operation of the conventional shuflle panel (not shown) or some other means, so that all ball switches are again open.

It will thus appear that the invention affords a new scoring arrangement for a ball rolling game in which the objective is to illuminate lamps in various linear series in the manner of scoring in the game commonly known as Bingo.

Moreover, the invention also affords a simplified searching or detecting circuit including the search switch means 30-31, I, II, III, IV, V, the search relays including the coils 41 to 45 controlled by the search switch wipers; the chain-circuit .connections, such as 50-56 for setting up an award circuit to control the evaluation switch means 5760 together with the motor switch means 32, 32A, 33, 34, for operating the rotary search switch means and the pulse switch means 3738 for actuating the evaluating switch.

The location of contacts on the search switch is contrived so that the searching wipers can simultaneously energize the several search relays according to a predetermined and progressively changing scheme of linear alignments (horizontal, vertical, or diagonal) of the score-indicating lamps in the square arrays; and the connections to the search relay contacts are contrived to set up .certain chain circuits to various award contacts depending upon the number of search relays which may be simultaneously operated at a given instant.

In this connection, it will be noted in Fig. 2 that the two possible diagonal scores would read as follows: 522 16--204 and 3'l916-2l12; and reference to the scheme of contact'distribution in the search contact banks shown in Fig. 3 will reveal that the last two vertical columns of contact buttons also read, respectively, 522 l6204, and 3l 9162l12, in correspondence with the diagonal number sequences on the score card shown in Fig. 2.

Thus, should three or more lamps (numbers) be-illuminated in either of these diagonals, the search wipers I to V would simultaneously operate the appropriate search relays 41 to 45 as heretofore explained, to set up the appropriate chain circuits.

In this sense, the search contacts are located in various critical relative positions in the banks for simultaneous testing in groups of five by the search wipers to find three or more hot contacts corresponding to three or more illuminated lamps appearing in succession or contiguity in one of the three possible linear geometric groupings, i. e. horizontal, vertical, or diagonal; and the value of the score to be awarded is dependent upon whether a winning score, thus detected, contains three, four, or five such lamps.

While the illustrative embodiments of the game cards and circuits respectively show linear score number and lamp patterns, it will be understood that circular or other geometric arrangements of lamps may be eflected, and the search contacts may be placed in the corresponding appropriate positions and sequences for group testing by the search wipers to detect whether the necessary scoring pattern has been achieved in the game or other device.

In other terms, the aforesaid specifically described searching and evaluating circuits can be expanded or modified to cover a greater or lesser range of both number and linearity or other geometric patterns, and it is to be understood that the foregoing circuit arrangements have been completely traced for only a few scoring possibilities in order to simplify the description so far as possible to illustrate the principle of the invention without undue complication.

It is further to be understood in this connection that, while the diagram of Fig. 3 shows all of the ball switches neededfor the game of Fig. l, the search contact bank of Fig. 3 depicts only the searching contacts needed for one score card (or light array) of twenty-five lamps.

Additional cards (such as the second and third cards in Fig. 1) would each require its own additional bank of search relay contacts (not shown), as well as its own bank of search contacts connected to the ball switches (not shown).

I claim:

1. In a game circuit, a plurality of game switches adapted to be closed as a result of operation of the game, certain combinations of said switches being adapted to determine an arbitrary score award value; search contacts connected with said switches in a power circuit as a result of game-operation thereof; searching contact means for traversing said search contacts to detect power-circuit connections as aforesaid; a plurality of search relays each 7 connected to be actuated by said searching contact means as a result of the detection thereby as aforesaid of predetermined power-circuit connections; chain-circuit switches actuated by said search relays responsive to detecting action as aforesaid to establish various chain circuits which correspond to certain of said predetermined power-circuit connections; award contact means connected with certain of said chain-circuit switches for connection to a power source as a result of establishment of the corresponding chain circuit by operation of the appertaining search relays as aforesaid; master switch means including an evaluation step switch and a stepping coil therefor together with evaluation contactor means actuated thereby for contacting said award contact means as a result of stepping action of the evaluation switch; motor means operable to drive said search contact means; stop-clutch means operatively interposed between said motor means and said search contact means; electricallyactuated clutch-operating means operable to stop said search contact means; circuit means energized through said evaluation-switch contactor and at least one of said established chain circuits for operating said stop-clutch means to stop the search contact means when at least said one of the established chain circuits is in fact established as aforesaid. a stepping circuit connected with said step-switch coil to actuate said step switch and its contactor; supervisory switch means connected in said stepping circuit and controlled by a member of said stopclutch means in the non-stopping condition of the latter to render said stepping circuit ineffective for stepping purposes, but operably controlled by said member in the stopping condition of said clutch means to render said stepping circuit eifective as aforesaid; a master control circuit for said motor means; and a score device actuated by said evaluation step switch as a result of stepping operation thereof.

2. In a game circuit, a plurality of score display lamps,

a lamp circuit for each of the same; and ball-operated score switches each connected for operation to energize one of said lamp circuits and illuminate a score lamp therein having a certain score-number designation, said lamps being arranged in a display array characterized by columnar sequences extending in several directions; a searching switch including search contacts each connected in parallel with one of said score switches and an appertaining lamp circuit, said search contacts being arranged in a predetermined order and grouping according to said columnar sequences for testing by corresponding movable search contacts for the purpose of detecting the energization of lamp circuits and the illumination of lamps; search relays each connected for operation by a certain one of said movable search contacts in response to detection by the latter of an energized lamp circuit in one of said search-contact groupings; search relay contacts operable by the appertaining search relays and respectively connected to establish diflerent chain circuits in conjunction with the relay contacts of a certain number of other search relays; evaluating switch means including difierent numbers of evaluating contacts in each of several award groups thereof, the contacts in each said group being connected to complete an award circuit through a certain one of said chain circuits each established as aforesaid; and an electrically operated score-award means including a movable contactor engageable with the evaluating contacts in each of said groups for energizing said award means according to the number of evaluating contacts in any of said groups for which an award circuit is completed by a chain circuit as aforesaid.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,618,486 Durant Nov. 18, 1952 

